Northamptonshire (94) trail Yorkshire (459-9 dec) by 365 runs

Jack Brooks needed only two sessions to justify his decision to leave Northamptonshire and move to Yorkshire.

Brooks exercised a get-out clause in his contract to join a First Division county when Northamptonshire failed to win promotion two years ago and recorded Yorkshire bests with bat and ball in his first match against his old county.

First Brooks clobbered an unbeaten 37 in an entertaining last wicket stand of 61 with Steve Patterson and then shone in his more familiar role as seam bowler by taking five for 36 in the afternoon session.

“It’s justified my move so far how this game has gone,” Brooks said. “Last year Northamptonshire had a fantastic season and I was happy for the lads there but no matter what happens to them over the next few years I’m happy with moving up here.

“I think this justifies what has happened over the last couple of days and how my cricket is going forward and this team. It’s a great club to be involved in at the minute.”

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Northamptonshire’s 94 was their lowest total against Yorkshire since 1971 and they would have followed on had rain and bad light not wiped out the last session.

Northamptonshire will need further intervention from the weather if they are to avoid defeat in their second match back in the top flight after a ten year absence but Brooks is in no mood to do any favours for the club that his parents still support.

“It’s going to be a tough year for them [Northamptonshire], they are going to have to graft and work hard. They have a good work ethic and they play well as a unit but it will be a bit of a wake-up call to some of them who have not played in the top division,” he said.

“One session can cost you a game and that has shown here today. We are the kind of team that, if we can stay on top, we are not going to let teams off the hook.”

Brooks pitched the ball up and moved it sufficiently in humid conditions to undermine a weakened batting line-up. Brooks bowled James Middlebrook in his first spell then took four for 16 in his first five overs when he switched to the Football Stand End.

Brooks’ victims included his good friend Rob Newton who thin edged a beauty that left him late and David Willey, playing as a specialist batsman because a stress fracture of the back is preventing him from bowling, who slashed to gully.

Yorkshire supported Brooks with sharp slip catching and Ryan Sidebottom will be on the hat-trick at the start of Northamptonshire’s second innings after he bowled Maurice Chambers and had Mohammad Azharullah taken by Gary Ballance at first slip.

Ballance had earlier increased Northamptonshire’s frustration by extending his overnight 117 into his Yorkshire-best 174 which included an upper cut six to third man off Steven Crook which took him past 150.

Ballance was so in control that it came as a surprise when he went leg before to a full length delivery from Andrew Hall. His dismissal equalled the world record of eight LBWs in an innings — this was the eighth such instance — with the decisions evenly-divided between Mark Benson and Ian Gould.